Saendal
by Sitrophe
Summary: Vaan and Penelo go to Amal's weaponry to gear up, ending up with bringing someone else with them. Balthier is not too happy about this... BalthierXOC Rated M for blood, sexual themes later on and perhaps a few naughty words somewhere.
1. Rough Day at Work

_**Disclaimer:**_ None of the characters of Final Fantasy 12 belong to me. All copyright Square Enix and whoever made the games (My memory sucks, sorry.)  
Sigill, however, belongs to me! Yay! Enjoy the first chapter of _Saendal_.

* * *

Rabanastre, year 706 Old Valendian. It seemed to be a peaceful morning to anyone who would take a look outside. The Sandsea Tavern was filled with early drunkards as usual and amateur hunters who wanted to earn some gil.

A Bangaa and a Seeq fought with seldom used words which no one could comprehend, using their own languages, just outside of Amal's weaponry.

Amal was the owner of the shop – a blacksmith as well as a traveling merchant. He had two daughters, none of them a day over 25. The older one, Mira, was very ladylike in her manner of speech and way of acting around others, never wanting to get her hands dirty, while the younger daughter, Sigill, followed in her father's footsteps of a blacksmith and behaved more like a man herself.

This day was one of the few days where Sigill would have to take care of the shop by herself. Amal had had an accident with a hammer, during the weekend when he one night came home too drunk and had decided to try to forge a new sword. Amal had accidentally picked up the sword without anything to protect him from the heat and burned himself. Thus, Sigill had to take over for a couple of days until her father could return to work.

This was perfectly fine with her; she had been trained since her younger days to forge different kinds of weapons and she was proud to say that she received a lot of praise from customers who had bought her items. Although nobody really knew that it was she who had made them, since no one in Dalmasca had heard of a decent female blacksmith – she told them her father had forged them. That way she could secretly take the praise the customer thought they gave her father.  
Even her father was proud over her, and he felt relieved that she had become skilled in the art of steel. This made it a lot easier for Amal to take care of the house together with his wife and maybe soon he could even retire without a worry.

As she opened the shop, Sigill waved off her sister Mira who would go to the 'neighboring' city of Balfonheim to find a fiancée.  
Sigill had always been slightly jealous of her older sister. Mira would always fool around with other guys, while Sigill never even had a Seeq look at her. Even a Bangaa wouldn't look two times at Sigill, much of which could be thanked for her blackened face, strong musculature and hardened hands.

Hume as she was, she let it be and proceeded to put up all the new swords, bows and staffs she had been working on the night before for selling.

"Excuse me!" A young boy's voice could be heard. Sigill shot her head up from a box behind the counter to welcome her first customer for today.

"Welcome! How may I be of service?" She asked with her usual, greeting smile.

Sigill took note of the hume boy, who couldn't be much younger than herself, and what seemed to be his friend. He had an open armored vest, showing off his toned abs. His blonde, spiky hair with bangs hanging down on each side framed his face. His smile was quite charming. She remembered that she had seen him before. He was one of the boys who worked for Migelo. Migelo would often send a small amount of gil with him to buy some weapons. Although Sigill had never been this close to him – this was the first time since the war that she'd been granted to keep track of the shop, therefore she had only seen him from afar while her father was at work and she herself stood in the back forging. His friend was of female gender – also a hume. Blonde too, with pigtails. A yellow and dark-blue-ish one-piece suit, although nothing more noteworthy according to Sigill.

"I'm looking to re-equip, and I wanted to see if you had a Longsword or two, as well as a Healing rod and a Crossbow." His voice was smooth but sounded kind of nervous.

Sigill smiled back at him, pondering whether or not she had any Healing rods in store.

"Sure thing, just give me a second and I'll have a look. I know for sure there are a couple of Longswords hanging on a rack just by the entrance, so feel free to grab the ones you fancy."

The boy did as he was told. He and his 'girlfriend' went to the entrance to look for the weapons as Sigill went out in the back to search for the Healing rod. She had already found the Crossbow when she heard a big crash out in the shop followed by an intimidating voice.

"You better not be causing any trouble out there! I'll make you pay for every little piece of scrap metal there is if you do!" Sigill threatened the youngsters as she grabbed her trusty hammer which she used when she was forging. She had forgotten to hang it on her waist when she opened up, so she did that now instead. It made her feel more at ease. Didn't really happen much if she had it beside her at all times – not many would go up against a furious woman with a hammer.

She went out to see what had happened, since they didn't respond to her threats. All she could hear was steel against steel as she tried to get to the entrance.

All of a sudden the boy rushed over to her, holding his broken dagger against her throat as his other hand took a firm grip around her own. She glanced at his female friend questionably and noticed that his wrath was not really aimed at herself, but an Imperial Guard who stood beside her by the door

"Let us go or I'll slit her throat!" The boy shouted at the Imperial.

"Such a peasant as yourself couldn't possibly sink any lower." The Imperial growled.

"Vaan, we have to go! We can't stay here!" The girl shouted from behind the Imperial.

Vaan, who still had Sigill in an iron grip, ran out of the shop before the Imperial could even react. Neither did Sigill have a chance to reflect on what just happened. All she knew was that all of a sudden she was being dragged in all haste all across Rabanastre. From East end to the West Gate. More and more Imperials gathered along the way to try stop them, although Vaan and the girl apparently knew what they were doing. They seemed to know every nook and cranny of the city.

Several detours later, Sigill found herself gazing upon one of the most beautiful ships in all of Ivalice. She wondered if it flew as gracefully as it looked. It was truly a remarkable ship. Although she didn't have much time to admire the ship, as Vaan dragged her aboard the magnificent airship without a single thought.

The board walk was closed behind her and before she knew it, she was standing, panting, in the cockpit of an airship. Had she just been taken hostage?

"Vaan! Penelo! It's about damn time you two showed up! We've had those dimwits on our heels for half an hour, waiting for you two to get back!" Another blonde, muscular man who seemed to be in his 30s showed up in front of them.

The man grabbed the two youngsters and ordered them to sit down and buckle up. After which he ran over to the board walk to ensure everything had closed up properly.

"_We're good to go!_" He shouted back to the cockpit.

A Viera showed up from nowhere, running in her black stilettos to the cockpit, sitting down in one of the seats and began to hammer away at the dashboard.

"30 seconds to lift-off." She stated, her red eyes flashing over the screens and out on the landscape as she did.

"Fran, I need you to ensure that the sub-engine is stable." A third man commanded, flicking a couple of switches above his head and pulling a lever to his right.

"I've already checked it, and I believe it will hold at least for a quick escape – we will have to repair it afterwards if anything goes wrong." The Viera replied.

"Good." The man responded, running his fingers through his hair. "Ladies and gentlemen, get ready for take-off. We're about to exit the stage."

"Wait, what? I- I… There's no seat for me!" Sigill panicked, staggering around in the cockpit behind everyone else, trying to get someone's attention.

Sadly, no one seemed to hear her over the turbulence and ruckus caused by the Imperials banging on their 'back door' and the yelling from the man in the cockpit, who seemed to be the captain, ordering everybody around during the last seconds before taking off into the sky, leaving the hangar behind them with a great dust cloud created by the liftoff as the only evidence of them ever being there.

* * *

And there we have the first chapter! Rate and Review, so I know if I should write/upload more. I have at least 9 chapters planned for now, so that's good, I guess.

Sorry for the short chapter, but I find it better that way.


	2. A Female Blacksmith

_**Disclaimer:**_ None of the characters of Final Fantasy 12 belong to me. All copyright Square Enix and whoever made the games (My memory sucks, sorry.)  
Sigill, however, belongs to me! Yay! Enjoy the second chapter of _Saendal_.

* * *

The captain of the ship stood up together with Fran after securing the ships course and turned, with a small glimmer of fury in his eyes. Trying to maintain his calm, he traversed across the room only to stop before Vaan and Penelo that had, just moments earlier, whisked away Sigill from her everyday life in her father's smithy to a world where she apparently could be considered a hostage.

"What on earth were you impudent kids thinking? You ought to have been more aware of your surroundings!" The younger ones could hear the anger in his voice, even if he managed to keep his composure.

"Sorry Balthier…" Vaan rubbed the back of his head. "We ran into some trouble while re-equipping."

"I'm afraid 'Sorry' isn't going to cut it." The older man came up behind them and pinched their ears.

"I know, I know! Let go!" Vaan cried, flailing his arms around him.

"Moving on - did you get the requested items?" Balthier let out a sigh, once again running his fingers through his dusty blonde hair.

Vaan and Penelo turned pale as their little 'heist' came to mind.

"About that…" Vaan chuckled nervously while slowly backing away from him.

"Go on." The older man said, grabbing Vaan's shoulders.

"We didn't have the time to buy any supplies; an Imperial walked in on us! So we took the blacksmith hostage and… Ouch!" Vaan was cut off by a swift strike to the top of his head.

Balthier massaged his own hand with which he had struck Vaan.

"You can't just take hostages. Dear God, Vaan – you do know this means we won't be able to even show our faces back in Rabanastre for a while?" Balthier motioned to Fran to land the ship. "What of the blacksmith?" He continued.

"We might have accidentally brought the blacksmith with us…" Vaan glanced over the cargo hold, noticing the unusually big pile of boxes and canvas he previously secured personally.

"You did what?! Where is the old man?!" Balthier growled, slightly cross at the mess their escape had made, both in the city of Rabanastre, and in their cargo hold. "We have to find him. I don't want any guests on my _Strahl_."

With those words, Balthier ordered the crew to look around for the unwelcome guest. Vaan and Penelo continued being scolded by Basch before heading out to search for Sigill as well.

"Damn kids…" Balthier muttered as he headed for the cargo hold where boxes and other things had been piled up. He couldn't stand seeing his beloved _Strahl_ having debris scattered within her.

As he moved boxes and old weapons as well as ammo and spare parts, he uncovered a hand. It was rough, but small. Seemed more like a woman's hand.

"What on earth-" He cocked an eyebrow, wondering who else was on the ship. Was this a thief?

Balthier hastily threw all the boxes aside and found a redheaded girl lying beneath them. She had been knocked unconscious and grazed her forehead at some point. He calmed down a little, although still being wary of the situation. He picked her up in his arms and carried her to his own room on the _Strahl_.

He thought nothing more of it, and returned to the cockpit where the rest of the crew stood.

"Ashe, would you kindly go to my room and tend to our guest's wounds?" She nodded without questioning him.

"You found the blacksmith?" Vaan asked eagerly.

"I'm afraid not. On the other hand, what I did find was a girl. Red hair down to her waist. I wonder how she could've gotten aboard…" Balthier sighed. "By the sound of it, you could not find him either?"

"Why do you keep asking for a 'him'? The blacksmith we dragged here was a female… Kind of like the one you just described." Penelo mentioned.

"You two – my room, now." Balthier made haste back to his own room.

There she lay, carefully being tended to by Ashe.

"The wound is nothing serious. The bleeding had already stopped when I got here - I merely cleaned her up. I was just on my way back to the cockpit – do you want me to inform Basch and Fran?" Ashe rose in a graceful manner and swept by the three of them and stopped by the door, waiting for Balthier's response.

"Thank you, Ashe. I need you no further for now. Let Fran know the status of the situation, if you please." Balthier turned to Penelo and Vaan with a serious expression on his face. "Is this the blacksmith you were talking about? Or is she too, a common thief?"

Vaan glanced at Sigill, still lying unconscious on the bed, and nodded.

"Yeah, it's her."

"Good. That's all I need from the two of you. Now that 'tis confirmed, we can all breathe out before deciding on what to do with her. We can't have her stay." Balthier felt like he could finally relax.

A few hours had passed since they had landed in Giza Plains. Fran had activated the invisibility cloak for the _Strahl_ and Ashe had been out with Basch on watch. They could never be too careful; even if they were invisible and all that, they were still close enough to Rabanastre; Imperials could show up at any minute.  
Balthier was cleaning his trusted gun while Vaan and Penelo were outside, hunting down some wolves and Giza rabbits. Fran sat patiently beside him while he repeatedly assembled and disassembled the gun. It didn't take many minutes before Fran finally questioned his troubled expression.

"Do you wish to talk?" The Viera rested her head in her palms, calmly gazing at her partner.

"Fran, dear – you really know when something's up. Well, I am pondering on what we should do with the girl. She must be around Vaan and Penelo's age, but she's a blacksmith – or so they say at least. She is probably very inexperienced and has most likely never been outside of Rabanastre, nor fought a monster before – she'll only slow us down." Balthier rubbed his temples, taking a break from cleaning the gun and continued. "Although we can't just leave her here, she won't be able to get back alive – nor can we escort her back, you know so too."

Fran tilted her head.

"Balthier, this seems to be one of those rare occasions where you show care for another hume. Though I am afraid I cannot answer your questions; I am not in the right place to make such a big decision. You will have to speak with the other humes if you wish to know what to do in this situation."

"Oh Fran, you amuse me. I simply wish for our journey to proceed without any disturbances." Balthier replied, cocking one of those famous grins of his.

"If that's what you believe. I will go out and take the second watch; it's late, you should go to sleep. I propose you move the girl to the cargo hold or stockroom overall, leave blankets with her and get into your own bed." Fran stood up and walked over to the open board walk. "Good night, Balthier."

"Good night, Fran." The man replied.

On his way back to his room Balthier took off his vest. The plated parts of it had been scraped and Balthier could not stand being seen in such a manner. He inspected it carefully before letting out a big sigh.  
Upon opening the door, he saw Sigill standing before him in the dim lit room, looking rather confused. She looked like she was drunk out of her mind.

"Oh, awake, are we? I hope you slept well, although I cannot guarantee your temporary bedroom will be as comfortable as _my_ bed."

"Where am I? Who are you?" Sigill rubbed her forehead, taking a good look at the handsome man standing before her. It had been a good 'sleep', but right now she just had a terrible headache.

"Not even a care? You covered my bed in filth. Well well, I guess you are a little bit dizzy. And since you seem to know next to nothing, I shall explain your situation - You are aboard the _Strahl_; my beloved aircraft. You also happen to look at the leading man himself; captain of said ship. Now you tell me your name, young one. 'Tis rather rude to ask ones name before giving your own." Balthier lay the vest on the bed, carefully analyzing her every move.

"So her name's _Strahl_? It's a beautiful name – fitting for such a marvelous ship." Sigill felt rather uncomfortable with the man staring at her like that. "And the name's Sigill – I'm one of Amal's daughters. He's the blacksmith in Rabanastre." She looked at the vest he had lain down. "Is it damaged? I can fix it if you want me to."

"Amal, you say? I thought it was weird. Well, I suppose I should welcome you, Sigill. My name is Balthier – a sky pirate." He paused, lifting one of his eyebrows and smirking at her. "If you dare to touch my vest without making it worse, I might consider letting you try to patch it up. It better look better than before, though." He threatened, still with that glimpse in his eye and that cocky grin of his.

"I believe I was kidnapped. I am afraid I must retract my offer and make my leave. I do not wish to be part of any 'pirating' of any sort. I was raised better than that." Sigill began to remember what had happened earlier before she had passed out. "I can't believe how you can take advantage of a young woman. Pirates really are the worst."

"I too, must apologize; you will be stuck here for at least a couple of days more until we decide what to do with you. We can't just let a hostage run off like that." Balthier's smirk was filled with intrigue over the girl. "You will have no other choice, although I can promise you Vaan and Penelo will get their fair share of scolding first thing tomorrow morning for doing such a thing. Now, let me lead you to your room and we will surely see one another in the morning. I will have Vaan introduce you to everyone then."

Sigill was rather ticked off at his statement. She couldn't believe her ears when he told her she would be stuck with some sky pirates. Surely, so far it hadn't been that bad but she certainly didn't intend to stay. Taking a deep breath, she calmed down in fear of making the captain angry. She knew she had to play her cards right and this surely wasn't the way to win. Putting on a poker-face, she smiled at him and spoke a few last words before leaving the room.

"Can't do anything yourself? Too posh, are we? You're ridiculous, Balthier. And by the way, I'm leaving first thing in the morning. You won't even remember I was here." She couldn't keep her faked smile up, and even the dumbest of people could take the hint as soon as she had opened her mouth and the words came pouring out. Her voice quickly went from faked kindness and carefree-ness to a darker, more serious tone.

"I think not." Balthier unbuttoned his white frilly shirt as he moved over to her, getting closer every second. "And watch your tongue, young lady. You're not leaving without my permission. Maybe you'd be useful to us; a blacksmith could always come in handy – don't you think? Besides, the rest of the crew gets a say in this as well." His eyes told her he was being serious. Balthier had her in his grasp by merely using his way with words.

The sight alone of him frightened her. He was intimidating; something about his voice and calm yet on-guard posture seemed dangerous, kind of off. Sigill could barely hold back her anger at all any longer; all she wanted to do was to take that vest of his and throw it in his face, yell at him for his cocky attitude which had ticked her off.

The boy and girl named Vaan and Penelo were the ones who had whisked her away from her safe home, one she'd never even thought of leaving – but right now it Balthier had taken her hostage as well, in his own way. It was something she couldn't describe.

* * *

Second chapter done! So, what do you think? Rate and review for more chapters! :'


	3. A Nasty Attitude & A Silver Tongue

_**Disclaimer:**_ None of the characters of Final Fantasy 12 belong to me. All copyright Square Enix and whoever made the games (My memory sucks, sorry.)  
Sigill, however, belongs to me! Yay! Enjoy the third chapter of _Saendal_.

* * *

Sigill woke up the following morning, her back slightly hurting from the hard floor she had slept on. Her hips hurt a bit as well, since the hammer was still there. She had a bruise from where it had hit her last night when she'd fallen back at lift-off. At least the blankets had kept her warm – the nights in Giza Plains were terribly cold. She combed through her long, red hair with her fingers and let out a sigh. She opened the door to the corridor which lead to the cockpit and main room and sleepily walked around. The light from the sun shone on the white walls, blinding her as she tried to find the door to the cockpit. From there she could get to the board walk and get out of there.  
She grabbed a brass handle and walked into the room.

"Good morning to you too, Sigill, was it?" Sigill was met by a half-naked Balthier. "Your timing is impeccable. Care to mend my vest, now?" He handed her the vest that had been damaged back in Rabanastre, as if nothing had happened the night before.

Sigill stood there, speechless. She could not utter a single word. All thoughts of escape and anger from yesterday ceased to exist; a faint blush spread across her cheeks as she gazed upon Balthier's naked torso. His toned abs and tanned skin was enchanting to look at. Worst thing was; he seemed to be well aware of it.

She was stunned by the amazing golden color his hair had. Every streak seemed perfectly placed and as if shaped by the gods themselves. The room smelled sweet of his cologne; fresh, but cocky in some way. She had never seen such a handsome man before.

"Take a picture, it lasts longer." Balthier snorted, drying his hair with a towel in the meantime.

It entranced her so deeply; she forgot that she had barged in on Balthier's privacy.

"Care to close the door?" Balthier proceeded to dry his back with the towel as he stared at her with an annoyed look on his face.

"Oh, sorry!" Sigill snapped out of her daydreaming, quickly shutting the door behind her as she walked out. As soon as she had closed the door, she stopped and turned to it. "You mend your vest yourself! I won't do a thing for a pirate-scum like you!" She snapped, feeling quite satisfied with herself.

How could she have forgotten such an important thing? Why had all thoughts just vanished as soon as she saw him?  
She was still red as a tomato. What if the others would see her like this? He surely wasn't the only one on the ship – she knew that.

She continued to question herself and other things while quickly scurrying through the ship and down the open board walk, hiding her face as she did. These questions were pushed aside by a constant thinking of Balthier's naked upper body – she couldn't get the picture out of her mind. It drove her crazy not being able to come to an understanding of this strange feeling. She had never seen another hume with his body-shape before. Well, at least not half-naked. It was incomprehensible for her.

Once outside she sat down on a log that had been conveniently placed there for the watch's comfort. She sighed deeply and leaned back her head, closing her eyes. Her eyes started watering as the sun glanced at her pale face with its warm beams and bright light.

Balthier scoffed at the young girl who had yelled at him from outside as he threw the towel aside and put on his white shirt as well as the vest. He'd have to wear it until she fixed it – or until he decided to get a new one.

'_Such a cocky brat_' He thought.

She seemed to change her behavior a lot. At first she'd be all happy-go lucky – next she'd be furious, yelling at people. Balthier wondered if all young women behaved like this nowadays. He didn't even take into consideration that she was a daughter of a blacksmith. They tended to have some rough edges.

"An uncut diamond, that girl." Fran walked in on him.

Balthier smiled at his viera partner with that smug attitude of his.

"She sure is." Balthier picked up his beloved gun and put it in the leather holster on his hip. "What's on your mind, dear Fran?"

"I came over to relieve you of your thoughts before heading out for watch. Your actions yesterday weren't the same as they usually are. I also do not believe we need one more hume in our group. I am merely worried about your decision – if you've come to a conclusion, that is." She put a hand on her perfectly curved hip.

"Oh don't you worry. I have yet to make a decision, yes – but I will consider everything and analyze her every move and her complete personality before I get my say in this. The leading man cannot be as straight-forward as the children, right?" Fran cracked a laugh at him. He sure was interesting, making such a big deal of this. It was just another hume girl, after all. She knew he'd had encounters with a lot of them - everyone the same as the blacksmith one. "Now if you excuse me – I believe I have two youngsters to scold."

As Balthier walked out of the room Fran glanced at him one last time, this time with worry in her eyes.

"Balthier, my friend – do not act in a way which you will regret later. You can't end up like this again, I don't want you to." But Balthier didn't hear her. Her compassionate words were heard by her and her only.

"Are you alright, young lady?" The dark voice belonged to Basch, who had been sitting beside her all the time. Sigill had not seen him; she had covered her face after all.

Startled, she fell backwards and landed on the warm sand. Basch helped her up, chuckling a little as he did.

"Startled you, did I? Forgive me, young lady." He gently lifted up her hand and placed a soft kiss on it. "What's troubling you? A pretty little lady like yourself shouldn't be crying." He looked up at her with worry, gently wiping away the tears which stroke her rosy-red cheeks.

He had a gentle smile, gentle eyes and a very gentle voice. Although his body was rough, he had a very soft and gentle touch. Sigill gazed into his beautiful eyes, forgetting everything around her. He too could conjure that warm feeling within her – although a bit different than what she had experienced with Balthier earlier. Seconds later she realized Basch actually thought she had been crying, when it was the sun hurting her light-sensitive eyes.

"Oh I wasn't crying. My eyes are merely sensitive to bright light." Sigill gave the older man a heartwarming smile.

"So you weren't crying, but tell me this; why is your face all red then? Do you blame the sun there as well?" Basch chuckled.

Sigill's eyes widened as she tried to come up with a good excuse for her now rosy blush.

"No… Uh.. I…" She sighed, looking down at her feet, fumbling with her thumbs. "I… Might have accidentally seen a male hume – half naked." Sigill really couldn't come up with anything, so she decided to tell the truth. Well – at least half of it. Basch needn't know about her little 'meeting' with the Captain.

"Caught Vaan red-handed, did you?" Basch laughed, resting his head in his palms. "That boy needs to know how to lock a door, don't you think?"

"Yeah…" Sigill laughed nervously as she decided to play along, pretending it was Vaan whom she had walked in upon. She believed nobody here would like her wandering around and peeking on the captain. "I'm Sigill by the way. Pleasure to meet you-"

"Basch von Rosenburg, at your service. Pleasure to meet you too, Sigill." Basch rose up from the log, stretching his back and legs. "You go get to know the others – it'll be better for you to become familiar with the crew. Ashe and Balthier would be a good start. They pretty much decide things around here. Don't ask me why, but they are. It'd be good to get to know them. You might need to know how to act around them." He turned to her with a raised eyebrow. "You are staying, right? At least until the captain says otherwise? I know you've been through a lot recently-"

"I'm afraid I can't stay. There's nobody at home who can take care of the shop otherwise. My father's injured and now that I'm not there, they can only sell as much as they've got stocked up right now. They can't make any more until I come home or my father gets better…" Sigill knew she had to get back. A part of her wanted to stay; sadly it didn't weigh out enough. "I will take my leave now. It was nice meeting you, Basch. I hope we meet some other time during better circumstances."

"Oh… Well if that's what you want to do I have no right to stop you. Now run along – before Balthier notices. He doesn't take too kindly on a hostage running away, yet alone without telling him. He will be furious, you know. He wanted to have a conversation with everyone about this, although now I think it needn't be necessary since you're leaving." Basch walked up to her and gave her a warm hug. "Will you be okay? Do you know your way back?"

Sigill nodded. She had been to the Giza plains before, scavenging for materials.

"I have my trusty hammer and a dagger. I always bring them in case I'd run into trouble. Hammer's better than the dagger though, but I'll be okay." She smiled, moved by his kindness. She bet the others wouldn't have done nor said the things he just had. "Thank you Basch."

Those were her last words before heading out. She waved good-bye to the man as she ran. It would be a long way home.

* * *

Third chapter of Saendal is complete. I would be extremely happy if you felt like reviewing what you just read so I can get some kind of feedback :3 Until next chapter!


	4. Getting Out

_**Disclaimer:**_ None of the characters of Final Fantasy 12 belong to me. All copyright Square Enix and whoever made the games (My memory sucks, sorry.)  
Sigill, however, belongs to me! Yay! Enjoy the fourth chapter of _Saendal_.

* * *

The sun was blazing down as the day reached its peak of heat. So far Sigill hadn't encountered a single monster – which felt good. She didn't have to worry about fighting. Truth was she didn't really know how to fight properly; she'd just bash her foes with her hammer. Therefore, she couldn't take on any stronger opponents but normal wolves were okay once in a while. It wasn't too much of a hassle as long as they didn't attack in a pack. She cursed her dark clothes while thanking the gods she had picked out a tank top and a pair of hot-pants at least. It wasn't the best to forge with but during summer-time she had to wear it. Besides, yesterday she didn't have to forge much at all so it was okay as long as she wore her leather-apron; it protected her bare skin from the welding sparks.

Sigill decided to take a break from all the running she had been doing for the last hour – good thing she was in shape. She didn't even break a sweat. Well, at least not because of exhaustion. More because of the blistering heat she was being exposed to.

Sigill stopped by a nearby river to cool down and re-hydrate. Her father had taught her it could be life-threatening if one would sweat a lot without drinking any water. She started to feel the symptoms of it; a pulsating headache and a weak body. She prayed the wildlife would leave her alone while resting up so that she could regain her strength and then continue her journey home.

The water was cold and refreshing. Sigill leaned down and submerged her head under it. Her father had taught her this as well; if you're under blistering heat – cool down. A wet towel, cloth, or even wet hair was good enough for a while.  
The river, luckily, wasn't that deep. Even if she'd fall in it'd be impossible for her to drown unless she landed face-down and got paralyzed at the same time.  
A single tree stood tall by the edge of the water. It provided a small area of shadow enough for Sigill to sit down and relax in.

Maybe she'd be able to take a small nap here. The area was empty and thus she wouldn't have to worry about any monsters showing up.  
Sigill leaned against the tree as she thought of how she'd kind of miss Basch. She wanted to go home, but she wanted to bring him with her; he was gentle and showed care for her. It was interesting in a way, she thought. She believed her parents would agree as well. He was a big man and it would not be impossible for him to come and help running the shop with her. Balthier may look good but Basch was handsome _and_ nice to her.

Her mixed thoughts of the two men kept her awake for only a slight moment until she drifted off and fell to the ground, sound asleep.

Meanwhile, back on the _Strahl_, Basch went inside to switch shifts with Fran after he had waved off Sigill. He thought it sad she had to leave; it would've been nice with a girl like her aboard.  
As his thoughts wandered off, Ashe came up to him out of nowhere.

"You off the watch for now?" She asked calmly. The only royal about her was her calm. Other than that she could be quite fierce if she wanted to.

"Yes, your highness."

"Drop that already, Basch. I'm of no more royalty than the rest of you. I've left that behind for now; I will take back the throne someday – but not today. Today I am merely a common hume like yourself." Ashe smiled at the former knight. "Also, Balthier told me to inform you that we need to discuss this situation about the blacksmith girl. Vaan told me she was outside with you. Could you tell her to locate herself in the common room in… five minutes?"

Basch's stomach turned in a nervous manner. What would he tell them? That he had let her run away just like that? Balthier would be furious. So would Ashe.

"Uh… Yes, of course your high-… Ashe." Basch quickly walked away as Ashe went to inform the others about the meeting, his heart beating fast.  
Five minutes later everyone were sitting down in the carpet-clad common room – except Sigill.  
Balthier crossed his arms and leaned back in the chair as he raised an eyebrow at the man. Fran stood as usual beside him, expressionless as always. Vaan and Penelo had been scolded by Balthier during the time Basch was on watch and sat there quietly, staring down on the floor in shame.

The one to break the silence was Balthier with his low, commanding voice.

"Where's the blacksmith?" He asked in a manner which seemed calm, though everyone could notice the tension which spread throughout the air. The atmosphere was anything but calm.

Vaan and Penelo looked questioning at each-other.

"Come to think of it… Wasn't she outside with you while you were on watch, Basch?" Vaan spoke.

All eyes were on Basch now. He could feel the questioning stares at him. He'd agree on that it wasn't the most comfortable situation he had been in.

"She ran away." He simply stated.

The golden-haired sky pirate's heart skipped a beat. A young woman like her would never survive in the Giza plains. It was impossible. He could feel his anger sizzling up from the bottom of his heart. His whole body was shaking with anger. Balthier couldn't remember the last time he was this furious.

Penelo and Ashe gasped, eyes running from Basch to Balthier, back and forth.  
Balthier's eyes narrowed. He stood up and treaded swiftly over to the older man with light steps. Standing beside him he shot a piercing glance at the older man. His scarred face was filled with slight regret.

"You let her _go?_" Balthier growled. "Just like _that?_"

Basch nodded, slightly regretting what he had done. Once again he had disobeyed orders – what had made him do it? The thought of a sad young woman, not being able to meet her family again nor being able to support it? Maybe it hadn't been such a good idea to let the kid wander off alone. If she got hurt, it'd be on his conscience.

"You can't just let a hostage walk away, Basch! Oh dear, this will lead to some serious trouble." Ashe joined in on the conversation. Not that she really cared for Sigill; it was more that she didn't want the group to get into any trouble.

"Yeah, Basch! She won't survive in the Giza plains! She might be dead by now!" Penelo's voice cracked up. She really didn't want someone getting hurt. Even if she didn't know Sigill, it still hurt her feelings, hearing Basch was being so reckless.

"Either we leave her to her fate or – " Fran turned to Balthier in a swift motion. "We go looking for her, bring her back and take her with us."

* * *

Chapter 4! Yay!  
Sorry about having to cut it short, but it was for the best. Hope you enjoyed it and don't forget to review! It makes me really happy and way more motivated to write :3 it really means a lot. Until next chapter!


	5. Retrieval

_**Disclaimer:**_ None of the characters of Final Fantasy 12 belong to me. All copyright Square Enix and whoever made the games (My memory sucks, sorry.)  
Sigill, however, belongs to me! Yay! Enjoy the fifth chapter of _Saendal_.

* * *

Balthier took a deep breath and tried to calm down, running his fingers through his hair as he always did when something troubled him. He needed to make a decision – now.

He could feel the sweat starting to break out on his forehead. He needed to bring Sigill back – she'd die in the savannah by herself. If she wanted to go back that badly, he'd reconsider it later on after giving it some more thought and then escort her back himself. It was the least he could do. Balthier thought of the scolding he had given Vaan and Penelo; they deserved it. They really shouldn't have been that careless, bringing an outsider onboard. Now he had to clean this mess up. He'd convince her – one way or another.

"Basch, come with me – the rest of you should prepare the _Strahl_ for take-off. As soon as we're back I want my beloved ship to be ready. Also, this discussion is over. I have made my decision. Have I made myself clear?" Balthier took another deep breath to calm down completely. Being angry took its toll on his body. Seconds later he could barely remember what he had been so infuriated about.

Ashe, Penelo and Vaan nodded at their captain before walking off to get everything ready.  
Fran gave Balthier a concerned, stern look before heading off as well.  
Balthier knew pretty well what she meant. They had been partners for a very long time now and could easily communicate by simply glancing at each-other. He proceeded to grab Basch by his arm and drag him outside the ship as soon as the sound of Fran's stilettos faded in the distance.

"Balthier, I really think we should leave her alone. She needs to go home and take care of her family. I believe it was a very selfish and irresponsible act of Vaan – and you, to force her to stay. Why do you even care? She's just a young girl. You said it yourself." Basch commented on Balthier's behavior and his choice of words as they ran through the savannah landscape.

"My intentions are mine, and mine alone. The leading man has made his decision and I want this little play to continue. I must say she is one interesting young woman." He paused, wondering how Sigill was doing out in this heat. "I do not care if she has a family at home to tend to – families are not of any importance right now. A blacksmith would be handy to have aboard, don't you agree?" Balthier's cocky grin showed up yet again.

Basch remained silent as he studied his captain. What were his real intentions? Why had he taken such an interest in a random girl from the Dalmascan capital? He knew something was up and knowing Balthier, he wouldn't be too kind at first with her. That silver tongue of his was one of his most used weapons and it worked very well with charming the ladies. He could talk others into anything merely by the way he spoke. Balthier certainly was an interesting man and Basch could not help but wanting to know more about him. He would have to spend an evening trying to get Balthier drunk until he told him what he wanted to know. Yes, maybe that was the way to go. Next time they went shopping for weapons and other necessities he'd definitely go pick up some wine.  
Basch was hoping Sigill hadn't gotten too far. This time of the year the Saurians were extremely aggressive. They'd claim the area and drive out any other monsters except the Cluckatrice and it's 'henchmen'. Luckily, the dry season hadn't begun yet and thus, the Cluckatrice kept its distance in these parts of the Giza plains. Normal cockatrices were roaming around though. They're difficult enough to handle, at least for Sigill who didn't have one bit of experience when it came to fights.

"Sigill!" Basch called out. They had been running for quite some time now. "_Sigill!_" His deep voice rang throughout the landscape, echoing wherever it went. His worry started to show. His voice had cracked by now. What Basch didn't notice was that Balthier was just as worried he was. He just didn't want to show it.

"We will have to rest soon, Basch. Running in this heat will suck our energy right out." Balthier commented, panting as he did.

"I know. If my mind serves me right, there should be a river coming up ahead in just a few minutes if we keep-" Basch broke off. "Did you hear that?" He turned to Balthier.

"I surely did. We have got to pick up the pace – Come on." Balthier did not waste one second.

They both took off and ran as fast as they could towards the sound of despair which could be heard in the distance.

Sigill awoke by a strange noise, not too far away from her. Her eyes shot open; she was staring straight at a pack of wolves. Their eyes were vicious and filled with blood-thirst.  
They growled loudly, closing in on her for each second that passed.  
She could feel her heart throbbing inside her; it felt like her chest was about to burst. Amidst the panic she fumbled by her belt, trying to grab her hammer.  
She managed to yank it off and aimlessly swung it towards the nearest wolf. It took a direct hit to the skull and cried out in pain. Sigill could feel the impact with every inch of her body. It was as if the world slowed down. As the adrenaline spread throughout her body she could feel her limbs shaking, twitching. Moving around was difficult – not to mention attacking. That first swing had been no more than beginner's luck.

Maybe it had been a bad idea to travel home after all – maybe she should've listened to them. Was she really that worthless and weak? Muscles without technique wouldn't do her any good in a longer fight.  
She mustered up the last bit of strength, prepared to swing the hammer at least once more. It had been so long since she was in a fight; she did her best not to pass out from exhaustion – the hammer seemed a lot heavier now than before.

Sigill hit one of the wolves, killing it off. Just as she did, another one lunged at her. It caught her off guard and she fell to the ground with the 100 pound wolf over her, saliva dripping from its wide open jaws.

She let out a high-pitched scream in pure shock.

"_Please God, help me._" She cried out in fear of dying.

It felt like her whole body was bleeding due to the claws of those vicious things. That stinging feeling was unbearable. She was aching.  
It would be her undoing. Right here – right now. Why had she fallen asleep in the middle of the day in enemy territory? If she lived through this – she'd absolutely think twice about the situation before acting. It was her weakness, after all.  
She felt her mind slowly drifting away. She closed her eyes and gave up on trying to push away the wolf.

'_I wish I could have held my promise. Forgive me dear mother, father._'

A gunshot.

_One._

_Two._

_Three._

Three gunshots.

The struggling wolf over her fell aside, whining slightly before its life faded away. Sigill could feel its warm fur against her right arm.  
She slowly opened her eyes and sat up. Before her stood Basch with his sword drawn – covered in blood and Balthier with his gun in his hand aimed at the wolf beside her.  
Both Basch and Balthier had a very stern look on their faces. Sadly their eyes were locked on her.  
Basch didn't hesitate one second before taking two big steps towards her, now standing in front of her. He grabbed her shoulders after helping her up and shook her.

"What on earth were you thinking? How did you end up like this? You should've come farther by now, what on earth did you do?!" He scolded her.

Sigill noticed a tear on his scarred face. Had he really been this worried about her?

"I'm… Sorry…" Sigill turned her head away in shame. First she ran away from them and now they had to come and rescue her. Not to mention Balthier – it was impossible for her to face him. She avoided his stern eyes as much as possible.  
Nothing could compare this shame that welled over her. She had left them without a word except for telling Basch.  
Balthier was probably furious having a hostage escape right under his nose.

"Sorry will not suffice, Sigill. You have been incredibly rude and disrespectful. Although I cannot blame you and you alone. Basch was also at fault for failing to keep you from leaving." Balthier's stern voice was more than she could handle right now. Guilt and shame filled her within as she tried her best to come up with a good excuse.

"It's not like I _wanted _to stay… Give me one good reason, Balthier – One."

He scoffed, grabbing her arm while motioning to Basch to do the same.

"It is far too dangerous for you to go back to Rabanastre for now since you were seen with us. We are wanted sky-pirates and you'd be classified as one too. Now if you please could join us back at the ship without any more struggle, that would be great."

Sigill couldn't come up with a response and gave in to the two men.  
They had given her a second chance. A last chance to fulfill her vow to her parents. It was indeed a ridiculous promise, nonetheless something she had sworn to do when she found the one she was searching for.

Sigill staggered back to the _Strahl_ behind Basch and Balthier, constantly thinking of what was going to happen to her from now on. Balthier's stern look would forever be printed into her mind.

* * *

Fifth chapter up! What do you think?  
Please review~3 Until next chapter!


	6. Scolded

_**Disclaimer:**_ None of the characters of Final Fantasy 12 belong to me. All copyright Square Enix and whoever made the games (My memory sucks, sorry.)  
Sigill, however, belongs to me! Yay! Enjoy the sixth chapter of _Saendal_.

* * *

Sigill stood in front of the mirror in the room they had appointed to her, staring upon herself.  
Her waist-long hair was the same color as Galbana lilies – her favorite. Usually it was fluffy and shining – now it was stripy and tangled. She hadn't had a shower since she was taken back earlier that day and she felt awful. She twirled a crispy curl around her index finger, wondering if she should take a shower or not – though it was probably for the best. Her black top and hot-pants had light patches from lying in the sand, not the best decision on her side.  
Almost all of her body was covered in scratches from earlier. Dried bloodstains smeared out by the sweat covered the rest of it. How could she have let Balthier gaze upon her in such a state?

She was an embarrassment.

Her hand fell down to her side when Sigill realized she had been thinking about her appearance – this must've been the first time in several years. She usually didn't mind getting neither her clothes dirty, nor her hair but this time it felt different. As she had inspected the others onboard she had realized that maybe she could put just a little effort into her looks – just this once.

"What am I doing…? Barely a day has passed and I am already starting to change..." Sigill asked herself.

She decided to take a shower – she could at least smell good.

Sigill opened the door to the bathroom – a marble toilet, marble sink and the ceiling was painted with a dark blue color with small, blue glowstones resembling stars.  
It wasn't too spacious but it could still fit a shower and of course – a toilet and a sink as well as a bathroom wardrobe to store the towels and hygiene-products. The shower had glass doors. It was amazingly beautiful to gaze upon. She opened one of the drawers and found waterstones as well as some other ones.

"Maybe this won't be so bad after all…" Sigill sighed happily. She could definitely imagine a quiet shower in here after a rough day of forging – or whatever duty they'd put her on.

Sigill took a good look around before slipping out of her tank-top.  
Grabbing one of the waterstones and a firestone, she put them in their place in the shower cabin. Thankfully, the water-system worked the same way here as it did at home.

"Enjoying yourself?"

Sigill froze right on the spot – except her arms which instantly covered her breasts. She did not intend to turn around and she didn't need to. Sigill recognized the owner of that voice immediately.

"How very rude of a gentleman such as yourself to sneak up on a naked woman." She growled through clenched teeth.

"On the contrary – I'd say we're even now, since you walked in on me as well. I simply wanted to clear the scores."

Sigill didn't have to turn around and look at him to notice that smug grin of his; she could hear his voice, after all. That was all she needed to tell.

"What do you want, Balthier?"

Balthier let out a deep sigh.

"A little grumpy, perhaps? And here I was, hoping to play a little game. Oh well." He chuckled. "I want you to come to my room later – we have some business to discuss if you're going to stay with us for a while. You will have to make yourself useful, Blacksmith."

"_Get out!_" She cried, flailing one arm in Balthier's general direction, motioning him to actually get out of there.

By now her cheeks had the same color as her hair and all of her warmth had transferred from all of her body to a concentrated spot - her face. She definitely didn't want Balthier to see her like this.  
Balthier had probably noticed. He seemed to be a very perceptive man and she had already started hating it.

"Make sure to swing by my room when you are done." He chuckled as he closed the door behind him.

Sigill sighed, slipping out of her hot-pants and underwear. She turned the water-tap a few times after she'd put the lights out, making sure that the water was comfortably warm.  
She closed the sliding doors to the shower carefully and twitched a little when it creaked. She would need to speak to whoever did the maintenance on this ship about it.

Right now, the only thing she wanted to think about was the water, licking her body softly, rinsing the dirt and the blood off of her scarred body.  
The relaxed feeling which swept over her felt like nothing she had experienced before. Her muscles relaxed as well as her mind. She could calm down, stop thinking about Balthier or Basch's… Gentle… Smile… This was going to take a while.

Three hours later, Basch roamed through the corridors, careful not to touch anything.  
The sun had just gone down as he had left his room. It didn't take long before he reached his target. He knocked carefully at the door in front of him, patiently waiting for it to open.

Sigill popped her head out as she opened it to see who it was. She smiled at the former knight, the slightly older man.

"Please, do come in." Her voice was silky smooth and a lot calmer than earlier.

Basch stepped inside, his hands behind his back.  
Sigill closed the door behind him before motioning him to sit down on the bed.

"I brought a gift." He said, pulling out an old wine bottle and two glasses.

"That is very kind of you, Basch. May I ask why you chose to visit at such a time? It is very late."

Basch put down the gifts, gently lifting her hand to his mouth, kissing it.

"You have sparked my interest and I merely want to know more about you, thus I decided to kick back and relax with you, maybe drink some wine." His voice felt just like the warmth of the water from before.

Sigill was supposed to meet up Balthier in _his _room by now - but now she had _Basch_ in _her_ room.  
Balthier would probably scold her again if she didn't show up, but she couldn't say no to Basch?  
Had he not showed up if he didn't want to talk about something important?  
Although the thought of getting scolded again was not what Sigill wanted to think of right now.  
Then again – The only thing Balthier had been doing all this time was scolding her, complaining on her. Basch on the other hand acted like a true gentleman and treated her with kindness.

'_Oh well… You only live once._'

"That sounds like a great idea, Basch."

There was no turning back now.  
Sigill sat down beside Basch on the bed and smiled gently towards him.

"Well then, do you mind if I ask some questions?" He asked, opening up the bottle of wine with a loud 'pop'.

"Not at all. Please do."

"I'll start out with some basic questions then – how old are you? I know it is not very kind to ask a woman's age but my mind will not settle until I know." Basch poured the liquor up whilst talking.

"I don't mind." Sigill replied, grabbing one of the glasses. "I'm 21."

"You sure seem a lot younger, if I may say so." Basch took a sip out of his own glass. "What's your full name?"

"Sigill Ti'arath. My surname, however, was not a name given to me by my old folks. It was a name the son of a customer of my dad's gave me. He used to swing by the shop every now and then when he was in town with his father. Sadly, I cannot for my life remember his face or his name. Now that I think of it, he must've been around my age – perhaps a few years older." Sigill paused, taking a gulp of her wine. She could feel the liquid burning down her throat – she wasn't very accustomed to alcohol yet. "What I do remember is what he told me when he gave me that name – '_Ti'arath will be the name I will come to reckon when I grow up. I will hold your name dear and when we meet again I will know who you are and then – I will promise to marry you. You are an angel in disguise and my heart will always beat for you._' I never saw him since." She swept the last of the wine as if it was nothing and let out a deep sigh.  
"We used to play together when he visited. Unfortunately his father would always yell at him, saying it was not for someone of his status to play with a blacksmith's daughter. The fact that he promised to marry me is something I still bear in mind although it is more of a distant memory to me than a promise. It was ten years ago and I doubt he feels the same. Nevertheless I took the name he gave me and decided it would be my surname."

Basch glanced upon her with a caring expression.

"That was indeed a very beautiful story. I hope you will meet him again soon."

"That would be impossible, I'm afraid. I was told he died in the war. Next question please." It was a very touchy subject for her even if she almost had forgotten all about him. She had moved on since the announcement of his death. For days she had cried, wondering how her life would turn out without him. Even if it had been a child's promise, it was still a promise. He was the only male to say such things as he had done.

"I beg your forgiveness, my lady." Basch poured up some more wine before moving closer to Sigill, gently embracing her. "If there's anything I can do, please don't hesitate to ask."

Sigill enjoyed the warmth of his body; his presence was more than enough for her right now. All she could think of was that boy from many years ago. Maybe that really was her first love.  
Basch kissed her forehead softly.

"I'm at your service." He whispered.

She enjoyed his company quite a lot. It was nice to sit down, drink some wine and just… Just exist.

"Thank you." Sigill purred, snuggling with his comfortable chest.

Everything seemed perfect for the moment – until the door flung open.  
Sigill's eyes widened in shock and terror as she realized who it was. Basch on the other hand kept his calm, although confused, continued to hold her close as Balthier stormed in.  
He stopped when he saw the scene in front of him. They both noticed he fought to maintain his composure.

"Blacksmith, I thought I told you to come over to my room, yet here you are. And you're not alone, I see." Balthier raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms.

"Balthier, this is not really the right time for-" Basch tried to reason with the other man but got cut off.

"It surely is the right time, Basch. Sigill – please come with me." Balthier went over to the two of them and grabbed her arm.

Sigill held firmly around Basch, not wanting to let go.

"No…" She whimpered. She definitely didn't want to look at Balthier. She could _feel_ his glare.

"'Tis not as if you have a choice on the matter." He growled through his clenched teeth.

This was one time too many for him and she knew it. It was clear as daylight. She really had angered him again, and this time she had a feeling he wouldn't let her off as easy as he had done earlier.  
Still, this time was different. She was tired of being bossed around by the oh-so-famous _Balthier_. She was tired of his jerk-like attitude. That silver-tongue of his was nothing more than a tool to build up the façade he had covered himself in to lure in people into his vicious plans. He seemed almost amused when he got to scold someone.

Balthier yanked her arm, making her fall helplessly off the bed. He gave Basch a menacing look before dragging her out.  
The corridor seemed endless. Balthier still held a firm grip around her arm while walking at a brisk pace. Sigill stumbled behind him, tears streaming down her face. Not because of Balthier but because of the boy she had thought of earlier. Not that Balthier had made it any better, dragging her off like that. She wondered why he had to act like this, why he had to be such a jerk.  
She glanced up on him, noticing the bright moonlight beaming on his perfectly shaped chin, his high cheekbones and his beautiful sand-colored eyes with a little hint of green in them…

She was a hostage in her own body.

During their little walk, not even once did Sigill complain. Once in a while she'd look up on Balthier's troubled, yet beautiful face. Her tears had stopped, mostly because it felt like she'd dried up inside. She was still sad but no tears came.  
At last they had arrived at his room. The door was open – apparently he had rushed out without even a thought of closing it.  
Balthier carefully closed the door behind them. He let go of her and leaned against a nearby wall, gently rubbing his temples. He shot a glance at her but this time with soft eyes.

"Sigill, please – do not aggravate this more than needed."

"Just tell me what you were supposed to and I'll be on my way back to my room."

"As you wish, however I will not tolerate this kind of behavior any longer. Anyway-" Balthier cleared his throat. "You need to establish yourself in your work here. Even though you might be a woman, I'm sure you at least can take care of minor repairs and such. Thus, you will start your work tomorrow. I have given instructions to Fran as she will supervise you, provide the necessary information as well as show you how it is done. I hope you don't mind."

She immediately reckoned his statement as more or less an insult. Was he degrading her all because of her being a female? He couldn't possibly - or could he?  
Sigill rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.

"You don't have to sound so condescending, _Balthier_. Just because I'm a female does not mean I'm terrible at what usually is considered a man's work. I'll have you know I'm better at forging than my old man." Sigill scoffed.

"Tch." Balthier grabbed her arms and threw her onto the bed. He proceeded to place himself over her, standing on all fours as she lay there on her back with a confused, yet somehow scared look. "You should know your place – which is beneath me. The way you are acting is compromising my position as a captain. The others might soon start to believe that I can no longer bend others to my will and thusly; have no power."

She was restrained. Her heart was beating faster than what felt like the speed of light. A dark-colored blush spread across her face. No matter what she said or thought about Balthier, he still could make her feel weak at the knees. All of this was probably because of his charming attitude.

She promised herself she'd never fall for him. She'd only end up getting hurt – Mira had told her so.

After making his point, Balthier got up and brushed off his vest. He opened the door and motioned in a graceful bow for her to get out.

"I expect you to meet up with Fran first thing tomorrow morning. Good-night."

* * *

A bit longer chapter this time! What do you think? Review's makes me happy :3  
Chapter 7 will probably be up in less than a week.


	7. Bonding

_**Disclaimer:**_ None of the characters of Final Fantasy 12 belongs to me. All copyright Square Enix and the others. However Sigill is all mine :3  
Enjoy chapter 7!

* * *

Sigill woke up the following morning. She stretched across the big, red bed while the sheets seemed to prefer to follow her every move. The silk felt lovely on her naked flesh as she moved around, groaning slightly. It felt gentle against her bruises. It would take a couple of days before her wounds healed. Luckily none of her injuries were too serious.

She rolled out of her bed which seemed to regret it – her sheets and pillows followed her down to the floor. She got up and went to the bathroom. It was still beautiful in the morning, even if she couldn't see the starry skies.  
She splashed her face with the cold water from the tap, or rather – the waterstone. The refreshing feeling of the cold felt wonderful against her warm face.  
Sigill picked up her clothes, wondering when she'd get new ones. She slipped into them, tied her hair up in a ponytail and took a deep breath. She could do this. She would go out there and do her best to _not _slap Balthier in the face.

On her way outside she met Vaan and Ashe. Vaan, as usual, greeted her with a big smile and Ashe, as usual, gave no emotion whatsoever.  
Sigill felt like an outsider – she _was_ an outsider after all. She hoped she wouldn't have to stay for too long – she was starting to feel uncomfortable around some of the people in the group.  
Finally outside she met the Viera. She hadn't seen too many Viera's in the shop nor Rabanastre. They fascinated her with their soft, big ears and rabbit-like nose, their lifespan and their mind. The mind of a Viera was very interesting; their knowledge seemed to extend far further than that of a hume.

Fran looked upon her with her red eyes, carefully inspecting her new apprentice.

"So, hume. Balthier told me you are to stay here. He thusly informed me to teach you how to repair and such." Fran's movements were swift and graceful as she grabbed a couple of tools and pieces of scrap metal. "I trust you know the basics?"

Three weeks passed in this manner. Every day Sigill would endure Fran's lessons without complaints. They'd practice together and somehow they really bonded. Sigill came to be quite fond of Fran's presence. Some nights she'd try to converse with the Viera without success at first but later on she opened up slightly to her – even if they merely spoke about scrap metal and the _Strahl_. Throughout these three weeks Sigill and the group had moved from Giza plains to the Westersands. Ashe and Penelo had given Sigill a set of new clothes until they'd decide to move on to a town.  
Her encounters with Balthier were few during this time, as well as with Basch. Both of them had been avoiding her since the incident in her room. It was a relief for her that Balthier had been keeping his distance. This meant no more scolding and no more stern looks.

One evening, Sigill sat down in her room with her newly found friend.

"Hey Fran… What do you think the group's thoughts of me are?"

The Viera looked at her with a raised eyebrow, her long, elegant and white ears twitching.

"You wish to know the thoughts of the group? Very well. I shall share with you what I know." Fran paused for a bit, thoroughly thinking through her answer. "Penelo believes it is 'nice' to have another woman onboard. Basch seems to distance himself whilst trying to get closer to you; it seems like he does not know what he wants – insecure. Princess Ashe shows very little emotions but, like Penelo, seems to enjoy your company. Vaan would describe our situation as… 'The more the merrier', and Balthier thinks you're starting to grow as a blacksmith and he wants you to stay as one. He told me it would be most convenient if you'd do your job."

Sigill lay down on the bed, gazing at the ceiling. To her surprise, Fran lay down beside her.

"Why do humes always lay down in such a manner when their minds are astray?" She asked.

Sigill turned around, now being face to face with Fran.

"I don't know. I do it because it makes it easier for me to concentrate and ignore events happening around me." Sigill stated.

She didn't know if she'd be happy about the crew's thoughts. At least not all of them. Basch _had _been avoiding her and Balthier didn't seem like he cared for her at all. After all – she was just a common blacksmith.

"May I be excused? 'Tis late and Balthier asked me to check up on the sub-engine tonight." Fran got up and traversed silently across the room despite her stilettos.

"Of course you may. Wait, why are you to check the sub-engine?" Sigill shot up, sitting on the edge of her bed.

"Have you not been informed? We are to depart for our next destination at sunrise."

"No… I have not… Oh well." Sigill shrugged. "Oh, Fran? Could you be a darling and tell Balthier I want to see him before we depart? Preferably tonight."

The Viera responded with a subtle nod before exiting.

Now was as good a time as any. Sigill would have to make friends with him sooner or later. Balthier could be a handful – she had noticed that much. Yet she could not act nor behave this way if she was going to stay with them for a long time. She would have to blend in and hope for acceptance – as long as she did her job that part would come along just fine. Balthier and Ashe seemed to be the only problem still standing as the others had accepted her as a member of the group, at least according to Fran's little research.  
For the first time since she was taken hostage she felt like her situation wasn't as bad as she had thought at first. Her, now daily, conversations with Fran helped her a lot. It made her feel as if she wasn't such an outsider after all. Penelo and Vaan would join her as well while she was outside, practicing mechanics, lesser forging and repairs with the Viera. She had a lot of valuable information – information she could never get by working at home with her father. Fran had also promised Sigill she would soon let her repair the ship for real instead of working on scrap metal.

A subtle knock could be heard before the handle turned and Balthier stepped inside. Sigill's heart skipped a beat - she could never get used to his presence. He closed the door behind him with a questioning expression.

"Fran told me you wanted to see me."

Sigill went up to him and reached out an open palm.

"Your v-vest. T-take it off." She turned away her head, not wanting him to see the faint blush that had crept up on her. It was against her pride and her current principles to give in to his words.

"My, you are awfully quick to get me out of my garments." Balthier smiled slyly, crossing his arms and arched an eyebrow at her.

"Just t-take it off. You wanted me to f-fix it up, right?" Sigill pouted.

The man did as she asked and took it off in a swift motion. He chuckled as he handed the vest to her.

"Took your bloody time." His sarcastic remark was more than noticeable. Although she _had _taken some time to actually come over her pride and do it. "What triggered this joyful decision?"

"I heard from Fran we are to depart tomorrow. I simply wanted to fix it so that you may walk in public without feeling ashamed and afraid of looking poor." She snapped back at him, not too comfortable with his sarcasm.

"I thank you for your consideration. Now, do you want me to remove my shirt as well? I think I may have accidentally torn it yesterday." His sleek voice was filled with content as he proceeded to unbutton it.

Sigill's face turned from a shade of pink to the likes of a ripe tomato.  
She _did_ want to see his bare chest again.

"I'm just kidding. You should see your face – you are red as a rose. You really thought I was going to remove my shirt? Please, do not think so lowly of me. I would never undress voluntarily in front of you. I would not do it in front of anyone except Fran, actually." His smug grin disappeared.

"I'll leave it in the cockpit as soon as I am done with it. Now get out." Sigill snorted. Why did he have to mock and tease her so?

Balthier turned and waved her off with the back of his hand without even looking at her.

"Sleep tight."

As soon as he had closed the door Sigill laid the vest on the floor, lit up the room and was just about to reach for her hammer. Problem was - it wasn't there. The hammer didn't hang on her hip like it used to. Sigill could feel her heart beat faster yet again, this time in panic. What would she do without her hammer? She began to more or less trash the room in search for it, hoping she had just misplaced it. She left no stone unturned. She grabbed her bed sheets and tossed them aside. She flung open all of her drawers and closets with no result.

Sigill screamed in frustration and disappointment. She couldn't make the repairs if she didn't have her hammer. During her weeks practicing Fran wouldn't let her use her own and therefore it had been a long time since she had used it. No wonder she had lost it. Then it hit her.

She had dropped it three weeks back while fighting those wolves.

Sigill fell helplessly to the floor. What would she do now? She could never go back and get it, she didn't want to risk getting attacked again. This time she only had her dagger and that thing wouldn't do much damage.

She would just have to work without it.

"_Sigill! What's wrong?_" Basch's voice could be heard from outside. "_I heard you screaming, did something happen?_"

Sigill covered her mouth with her hands. She had not meant to wake everyone up.

"Sorry!" She hollered. "I'm fine. I just… Dropped my hammer on my foot." She lied. That's all she could do for now – she didn't want Basch to worry too much about her. He seemed to feel better without her right now.

She couldn't bother the others with her petty problems but there was only one thing she could do right now – go borrow one of Fran's hammers.  
Sigill would have to wait a while for everyone to go back to sleep. She cursed herself for having woken them up.

She sneaked outside when she was certain Basch had left and no one could be seen in the corridor.  
Sigill treaded lightly towards the cargo hold where she knew at least one of the hammers were.  
She carefully opened the door and went in to search for the hammer. She realized this would take a while since the cargo hold was filled with boxes of food and different tools. Sigill began to rummage through the boxes in a frenzy, desperate and mind-set to fix Balthier's vest. She thought that perhaps this way she would gain his attention at least in some way.

"Do you need anything?"

Sigill flinched by the Viera's sudden appearance, got up slowly and turned around in shame.

"I need to borrow one of your hammers… I need to fix something before tomorrow morning. Thought I would not need to wake any of you up. I apologize."

"Very well. Please ask next time. The hammers are in the box over there." Fran said, pointing at a box in the corner of the room.

Sigill nodded in response and went to fetch the hammer. Finally she could fix that damned vest.  
Once back in her room, she sat down on the floor and let out a sigh. _Finally_.  
Sigill started mending the vest. Gently tapping it with the hammer where it was damaged. It wouldn't take too long – the damage was not too great.

Four hours into the night, she was finally done. Carefully inspecting her work – it turned out better than she'd thought. She had even put that little own detail of hers into a corner of it - A small inscription which said '_Ti'arath'._ Ever since she had been given that name she'd put that inscription on anything she worked on.  
Sigill put the vest away without a single thought of delivering it to Balthier or dropping it off in the cockpit. All she wanted to do now was go to sleep. The repairs had taken its toll on her.  
Hopefully she would be able to sleep at least a few hours before departure. She had noticed the sun wasn't too far from rising. Maybe an hour or two would be all she would get tonight.  
Sigill could now peacefully drift off to sleep.

_"__Do you like it here?" The boy asked her._

_"__I do. The greenery is astonishing." She replied._

_"__Do you… Want to stay with me here?" The boy fumbled with his thumbs, a faint blush spreading across his face._

_She turned to him with a bright smile on her face._

_"__Of course I want to, and I'm really glad you asked but my father already told me we have to go home tomorrow." Her expression saddened shortly after._

_"__Oh… Then… Will you come back one day?" _

_"__I promise I will someday." The young girl got up, twirled around a little bit before turning to him with the smile back, plastered onto her face._

_"__Then… Promise you will marry me when we grow up?"_

_"__I promise to be your wife, no matter what-"_

Sigill woke up by someone banging on her door. She shot up, her hair in a big, red mess. Slightly annoyed at the person who had awoken her from her cozy dream, she slipped off the bed and opened the door.

"You overslept. Shall you accompany us in the cockpit? The others are waiting." The friendly voice belonged to Fran who now seemed to enjoy her company more and more for each day that passed.

"Yeah sure. I'll be there in a minute. Just let me get my belongings." Sigill mumbled sleepily.

Sigill now noticed she'd fallen asleep without removing her clothes – a common mistake on her part while tired. After grabbing the vest and attaching the hammer onto her hip, she followed Fran.  
She found everyone in the cockpit, just as Fran had told her. Sigill handed the vest to Balthier without even a glance, muttering something about 'here you go' and 'hope it's good enough for you'.  
Balthier slipped into it without replying. The other four gave her a heartwarming welcome before they all sat down, getting ready for take-off.  
As usual Fran and Balthier steered the ship while everybody else sat behind them, relaxing.

"Where are we going?" Sigill asked.

"Archades. It will be a good opportunity to stock up on things needed and clothes for you." Balthier's words made her feel like a bother. She did not want to think of how much she had slowed them down by getting dragged aboard and actually staying. They'd have to restock because of her, on both materials and food as well as clothes.

"Archades? That sounds brilliant – I've never been outside of Rabanastre. Not what I can remember at least." Sigill mumbled, still exhausted.

"I'm absolutely positive it will take your fancy. Might need to upgrade your taste if you want to fit in though. You will only be mocked if you walk around in those garments." Balthier added.

"_I'm already being mocked – by you_" She mumbled under her breath, making sure she could not be heard by anyone except Fran – nothing could pass by her senses. "How long before we arrive?"

"If everything goes as planned – six hours." Fran stated.

* * *

Sorry it took so long! But chapter 7 is finally up! What do you think? :D  
It's really difficult to keep writing without any encouragement, but I'm doing my best. The few reviews so far made me ultra happy, though!


	8. Possible Rivalry

**Hi everyone! I got one or perhaps two more chapters to update this story with, this one included. For now this story will probably be discontinued, seeing as there aren't many reviews (So I really don't know what you think of the story...) and I'm working on other stuff as well. But I had this lying around and thought I'd publish it for those of you who have been waiting, and maybe I'll finish it some day, but I don't know.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters except Sigill and Mira.**

"The Imperial city of Archades. Shall we?" Balthier motioned with his hand for everyone to move out of the airship.

Sigill stretched before walking down the board walk. Vaan ran out first, grinning from ear to ear.

"I never thought I'd be this far away from home! This aerodrome is way bigger than back in Rabanastre!" He laughed. At least he seemed to enjoy himself.

Sigill walked behind Balthier and Fran. She had never been outside Dalmasca. Visiting another city might be a good way to relax.  
Balthier spoke to a fellow who Sigill took for a Judge. She'd only seen a few of them back in Rabanastre. He gestured for a while and conversed quietly with the man. When the Judge shook his head Balthier rummaged through his pocket and pulled out some kind of wooden piece, showing it to him. Interestingly enough for her, he let them proceed after seeing it.  
Sigill thought no more of it – she wanted to enjoy her stay in this, what seemed to be, beautiful city.

"Fran, would you be kind and show Sigill to a shop where she can buy what she needs?" Balthier mumbled.

"Of course." Fran replied, relocating herself to Sigill's side.

"Basch, take the rest of the group and gather the supplies we need. We meet here back at the Aerodome when we are done."

Basch replied with a nod before setting out with Ashe, Vaan and Penelo.

"What about you?" Sigill asked, raising an eyebrow. Balthier cut her off before she could come up with a follow-up.

"I have some unfinished business to take care of. I will be back by sunset."

Fran and Sigill paced down the pavements of Tsenoble in silence. Fran spent her time carefully watching everyone around them. Anywhere they went someone stared. Sigill thought it was because of Fran – maybe some of them hadn't seen a Viera before.  
The blacksmith herself felt anxious, being in a new town and all. Her eyes shot nervously from left to right.

"Are we there yet?" She asked the Viera.

"Almost. In the meantime – keep an eye out."

Sigill sighed, realizing this wouldn't be as easy as she'd thought.

"Walking around in the Imperial city with no other companion than another female could be dangerous. Even if I am well capable of fending for myself, I cannot say the same about you. The proper parts of Archades may be just as dangerous as the lower, I'm afraid." Fran said.

"Well, I have never been here before so I will have to take your word for it." Sigill smiled at her friend.

The streets they passed were beautiful, the pavement was astonishing – not to mention the shops. The walls were heavily decorated with beautiful, foreign flowers.  
Inside of the clear windows she could see tons of different armor-sets, weapons, tools and clothes.  
Fran treaded into the armor-shop with Sigill right behind her.

"Pick something." She said.

Sigill looked confused, but did as Fran said and decided to browse the variety of goods before her.  
There were shoulder-pads and thigh-high boots, armor which left nothing for the imagination while some would have to make you imagine quite a lot.  
All she knew was she wanted something black, preferably with some red streaks in it or anything similar.  
After browsing through a large amount of armors she finally found the one she'd think would fit her perfectly. Sure, it needed some work but nothing the daughter of a blacksmith couldn't handle.  
The armor consisted of a pair of tight, black pants with a black and red leather-belt around the waist where she could hang her hammer, a pair of knee-high boots which looked an awful lot like the ones Vaan wore as well as a top with various metal decorations with a metal flower between her breasts. The armor left her stomach unprotected but the shopkeeper told her it was imbued with magicks.  
Sigill brought the armor to Fran who accepted it and paid for it. 15,600 gil later, they walked out of the shop and into another one – She still needed underwear. She picked out as many pairs as she could while Fran stood still, watching her every move. After having bought every piece of clothing she needed, Sigill went to a booth inside the shop to change. She had been dying to get into new clothes now for a while.  
Her new armor fit her quite well and Fran nodded in acknowledgment too.

"I hope Basch will have picked out a suitable weapon for you." Fran said on their way back.

"Hopefully." Sigill stretched and smiled, overjoyed with her new armor. "Hey Fran, why don't we grab a bite on our way back? We haven't been gone for too long and I'm _starving_."

"I guess we could." Fran's red eyes looked around. "But not here. We need to walk a kilometer or so to get to a good tavern. We cannot afford to spend money on a high-class meal until we join up with the others." She continued.

"Okay." Sigill shrugged.

A couple of minutes later they reached the tavern Fran spoke of. It seemed as if no matter where they went or how shabby a tavern was supposed to look according to Sigill – everything fit right into this miraculously green and wealthy city. She figured she actually wouldn't need a high-class restaurant; this would be more than enough. Sigill was not very accustomed to fine dining back in Rabanastre because of her family's wavering economy, meaning this would be a real gourmand treat for her.  
Sadly, much to her dismay, the tavern was fully occupied. They had apparently picked a bad day to dine here.  
Sigill turned around with a depressed expression, slightly pouting childishly.

"We will have to seek dinner elsewhere." The Viera exclaimed, emotionlessly patting her friend's shoulder.

"Let's just get back to the others…" Sigill's appetite was gone. Her expression had gone from a depressed state to shock.

"You looked forward to it, did you not? What changed your mind?"

Sigill turned her head away. She wasn't too keen on letting the others know she had a sister. The less they knew about her, the better, really. Not too far away from them stood Mira, chatting freely with another hume. She was surprised to see her such a long way from home. Mira looked gorgeous in her light-blue dress, then again – she was always gorgeous. No matter what Sigill did, she'd always lose to her sister in the end. She didn't know if she dared to face her sister after being gone for three weeks. Mira would probably go on and on about how Sigill should be at home while Mira _herself_ would go on hunts – although for men, but still.

"Never mind. Let's just get back." Sigill mumbled, her voice was filled with anxiety.

None of them uttered a word until they met the others who were patiently waiting for them.  
Vaan rushed up to her with a big smile plastered onto his face.

"That armor looks great on you! With all those details I bet it was expensive!" He exclaimed as he looked upon her with awe.

"Thanks, Vaan. I'm a little embarrassed though, showing this much skin is not what I am used to." She replied with a nervous and embarrassed smile.

Ashe and Penelo smiled towards her while Sigill noticed a blushing Basch turning his head away. Balthier shot a quick glance at her with a raised eyebrow and an approving 'Hm.' – or at least it seemed like he approved it. He truly was a man of mostly few words.

"Now let's get going, shall we? I have made arrangements for us to stay here for a while. There is a mansion waiting for us not too far from where we are standing now." Balthier motioned with his hand towards a taxi, not for one moment letting his eyes slip off of Sigill.

Sigill sat quiet in the carriage, silently gazing upon her beautiful surroundings. Outside stood salesmen and vendors, Seeqs and Bangaas. Everywhere she looked there were people strafing around, exchanging information with one another.  
Penelo and Vaan hung out the windows, pointing at everything in a childish manner, as if they had never seen such a place. Truth was, Sigill would be doing the same if it wasn't for her pride. She did not want to be portrayed as a mere child, especially not amongst this assembly of people.  
Balthier chatted calmly with Fran, eyeing Sigill every now and then. The Viera took, as usual, notice of everything that happened around her and analyzed it all. Scary beings, those bunny-like creatures.  
In the meantime Ashe and Basch sat silently beside each other. The princess really gave off that aura which makes you believe she truly is of royal blood.

It did not take long before they had arrived at this so-called 'mansion' – to Sigill it seemed more like a small palace.  
Outside stood servants, bowing to their guests.  
Up front on the pale marble stairs stood a man, not too much older than Sigill herself, ready to greet them. He walked up to them with open arms and a wide, warm and heartwarming smile.

"Ffamran! My old friend! It is to my delight to have you stay here at my manor. I must agree I was stunned to see you back in Archades. After you became a sky-pirate I never thought I'd see your pretty face on more than wanted posters!" The man gave Balthier a friendly hug. "And my, you brought a good set of companions indeed – beautiful, young women and two other warriors! I'm surprised to say the least; you were always such a loner."

_Ffamran?_

Balthier shot a menacing glance at his friend, pulling him close and held his collar.

"_You do not call me by my real name, is that clear?_" He growled, making sure the others couldn't hear him.

"Sorry, _Balthier_. I must've misunderstood. Surely you could explain the details over dinner, yes?" The man smiled at the rest of the group. "Come, fellow friends of my brother! I'm positive you must be starving by now; my little brother here tends to be a cheapskate. I shall show you all to the dining hall in person."

Balthier scoffed at him and sighed.

"You never change, Buchler."

"Oh and by the way, your guest arrived early and is already waiting for you at the table."

_Guest?_

**So what do you think? Please review D:  
See you all in the next chapter!**


End file.
